New face at Siam Cement

07 September 2004

Chantanida Manotaya may be a newcomer to Siam Cement, but the No 2 in the corporate treasury department of Thailand’s largest industrial conglomerate has wasted no time in trying to make a difference. Chantanida, 35, left her banking career to join Siam Cement in 2002 after being approached by the firm’s treasurer, Padungdej Indralak. The chance to join the corporate world came five years earlier than she had planned.

As assistant corporate treasurer, Chantanida is responsible for finding funding sources for the Bt260-billion conglomerate. She also takes care of cash and risk management for Siam Cement and its nearly 80 subsidiaries. “In the end, our goal is to help the group have the least possible cost [of financing]” she said.

Nobody seemed to question her knowledge and expertise in finance, but then Chantanida had sound experience at the Bank of America, where she was credit products chief until 1999, and as a Team Leader for Large Local Corporates at Standard Chartered Bank prior to joining Siam Cement. Chantanida said her previous experience working with foreign banks and foreign bosses had accustomed her to speaking out.

She spent a few years in the United States pursuing a master’s degree in finance at the University of Illinois, and early in her career, while with the Bank of America, she trained in Hong Kong for three months.